Tourist flow rises 14pc in first half
Manama : Bahrain welcomed 5.6 million tourists during the first half of 2017, an increase of 14 per cent compared to the same period in 2016.
This was revealed by Shaikh Khaled bin Humood Al Khalifa, CEO of Bahrain Tourism and Exhibitions Authority (BTEA), at a press conference held at the Bahrain International Exhibition and Convention Centre (BIECC) yesterday.
Shaikh Khaled said that inbound tourism expenditure during the first half of 2017 touched BD631.4 million while the average tourist expenditure reached BD77 per day.
General Director of Statistics Dr. Nabeel Shams and officials from BTEA also attended the press conference.
Total nights booked during the first half of 2017 totalled 4.7 tourist nights with Average Length of Stay (ALOS) reaching 2.3 night per tourist.
“Hotels topped the list of the type of accommodation booked by travellers, with over 70 per cent of travellers coming through the Bahrain International Airport and 72 per cent travelling through the King Fahad Causeway opting for a hotel stay,” Shaikh Khaled said.
The data was compiled by BTEA and the Information and eGovernment Authority following an agreement to implement the ‘Tourism Expenditure Survey to quantify inbound and outbound tourism for the year 2017.
“Our efforts are exerted in positioning the Kingdom on the international tourism map and promoting Bahrain as a regional and international tourist destination which is line with our overall tourism strategy,” said Shaikh Khaled.
Bahrain International Airport witnessed an increase of 23 per cent which is equivalent to 616,230 visitors and Khalifa bin Salman Port recorded an increase of 44 per cent which equals to 43,191 visitors.
BTEA also revealed that 57 per cent of tourists visiting Bahrain stated ‘holiday and leisure’ as purpose of the visit, while 22 per cent mentioned shopping followed by 9 per cent for friends and families, 7 per cent for business, 2 per cent for health care and 3 per cent for other reasons.
The Kingdom of Bahrain also welcomed 63 per cent of same day visitors (visitors who stayed less than 24 hours), which is equivalent to 635,454 tourists, and 37 per cent of tourist trips (more than one night) during the first half of 2017.
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